Synopses & Reviews
and#160;"A magisterially written, well-researched, informative, and entertaining biography of a woman who helped throw open the doors to broader participation and power for women in the Republican Party and American politics."
---Dave Dempsey, author of William G. Milliken: Michigan's Passionate Moderate
"Elly Peterson will be a text to which historians and researchers turn for insight into the yin and yang of mainstream politics in the mid-century."
---Patricia Sullivan, past president, Journalism and Women Symposium
"This lively portrait of a leading woman in the Republican Party between 1952 and 1982 also charts the party's shift to the right after 1964, revealingly viewed through the eyes of liberal Republican women. Intensively researched with ethnographic attention to the subtleties of political culture, Fitzgerald's book is essential reading for anyone interested in how the Republican Party changed during the turbulent decades after 1960 and how women and women's issues shaped those changes."
---Kathryn Kish Sklar, Distinguished Professor of History, State University of New York, Binghamton
"Sara Fitzgerald tells Peterson's story in this superb and timely biography. It carries a message that deserves the widest audience as the nation struggles to find needed consensus on critical issues amid poisonous political partisanship that has made it increasingly difficult for public officials to bridge their differences. I hope that every American reads it."
---Pulitzer Prize winner Haynes Johnson, from the Foreword
"To understand the quest for equal rights in America you really need to meet those women who were active at the time of transition. In this gripping biography we meet one woman who entered a male dominated world and triumphed."
---Francis X. Blouin Jr., Director, Bentley Historical Library
"Sara Fitzgerald's writing is as intelligent as it is entertaining."
---Best-selling novelist Diane Chamberlain
Elly Peterson was one of the highest ranking women in the Republican Party. In 1964 she ran for a Michigan seat in the U.S. Senate and became the first woman to serve as chair of the Michigan Republican Party. During the 1960s she grew disenchanted with the increasing conservatism of her party, united with other feminists to push for the Equal Rights Amendment and reproductive choice, battled Phyllis Schlafly to prevent her from gaining control of the National Federation of Republican Women, and became an independent.
Elly Peterson's story is a missing chapter in the political history of Michigan, as well as the United States. This new biography, written by Sara Fitzgerald (a Michigan native and former Washington Post editor), finally gives full credit to one of the first female political leaders in this country.
When Peterson resigned in 1970 as assistant chairman of the Republican National Committee, David Broder of the Washington Post wrote that "her abilities would have earned her the national chairmanship, were it not for the unwritten sex barrier both parties have erected around that job."
Review
"Flipping through the pages of Marina von Neumann Whitmans life…feels like viewing several extraordinary movies in one sitting."
—Tom Walsh, Detroit Free Press
Tom Walsh
Review
Historical Society of Michigan 2012 State History Award
Synopsis
The memoir of Marina von Neumann Whitman
Synopsis
One of the five Hungarian scientific geniuses dubbed "the Martians" by their colleagues, John von Neumann is often hailed as the greatest mathematician of the twentieth century and even as the greatest scientist after Einstein. He was a key figure in the Manhattan Project; the inventor of game theory; the pioneer developer of the modern stored-program electronic computer; and an adviser to the top echelons of the American military establishment. In The Martian's Daughter, Marina von Neumann Whitman reveals intimate details about the famed scientist and explores how the cosmopolitan environment in which she was immersed, the demanding expectations of her parents, and her own struggles to emerge from the shadow of a larger-than-life parent shaped her life and work.
Unfortunately, von Neumann did not live to see his daughter rise to become the first or highest-ranking woman in a variety of arenas. Whitman became a noted academic during the 1960s and '70s, casting her teaching and writing in the framework of globalization before the word had been invented; became the first woman ever to serve on the President's Council of Economic Advisers and participated actively in U.S. efforts to reshape the international monetary and financial system during the early 1970s; pioneered the role of women on the boards of leading multinational corporations; and became the highest-ranking female executive in the American auto industry in the 1980s. In her memoir, Whitman quotes from personal letters from her father and describes her interactions with such figures as Roger Smith of GM and President Nixon. She also details the difficulties she encountered as an early entrant into a world dominated by men and how she overcame the obstacles to, in her words, "have it all."
Synopsis
Marina Whitman is the daughter and only child of John von Neumann, one of the five Hungarian scientific geniuses dubbed and#8220;the Martiansand#8221; by their colleagues, a figure often hailed as the greatest mathematician of the 20th century and even as the greatest scientist after Einstein. He was a key figure in the Manhattan project; the inventor of game theory; the pioneer developer of the modern stored-program electronic computer; and, right up until his death, an adviser to the top echelons of the American military establishment. Whitmanand#8217;s memoir is the story of how the cosmopolitan environment in which she was immersed, the demanding expectations of her parents, and her own struggles to emerge from the shadow of a larger-than-life parent shaped her life and work. Starting as, in her words, and#8220;a trailing spouse,and#8221; she rose to become a noted academic during the 1960s and and#8217;70s, casting her teaching and writing in the framework of globalization before the word had been invented. She was the first woman ever to serve on the Presidentand#8217;s Council of Economic Advisers and participated actively in U.S. efforts to reshape the international monetary and financial system during the early 1970s. She pioneered the role of women on the boards of leading multinational corporations, and became the highest-ranking female executive in the American auto industry in the 1980s, serving not only as GMand#8217;s vice president and chief economist but also as its Cassandra while the firm persisted along a path that led eventually to its collapse into bankruptcy.
Synopsis
The memoir of the Construction Manager for some of the world's most famous high-rises
Synopsis
"John Tishman is a true pioneer in the Construction Management industry. Through his CM leadership, some of America's most well-known buildings have been brought to successful completion."
---Bruce D'Agostino, president and chief executive, Construction Management Association of America
"Building Tall will provide readers with insights into John Tishman's career as a visionary engineer, landmark builder, and great businessman. Responsible for some of the construction world's most magnificent projects, John is one of the preeminent alumni in the history of Michigan Engineering. His perspectives have helped me throughout my time as dean, and his impact will influence generations of Construction Management professionals and students."
---David C. Munson, Jr., Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering, University of Michigan
and#160;
In this memoir, University of Michigan graduate John L. Tishman recounts the experiences and rationale that led him to create the entirely new profession now recognized and practiced as Construction Management. It evolved from his work as the construction lead of the "owner/builder" firm Tishman Realty and Construction, and his personal role as hands-on Construction Manager in the building of an astonishing array of what were at the time the world's tallest and most complex projects.and#160; These include
- The world's first three 100-story towers---the original "twin towers" of theand#160;and#160; World Trade Center in Manhattan and the Hancock Tower in Chicago.and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
- The Epcot Center at Disney World.
- The Renaissance Center in Detroit.
- New York's Madison Square Garden.
Tishman interweaves the stories behind the construction of these and many other important buildings and projects with personal reminiscences of his dealings with Henry Ford, Jr., Disney's Michael Eisner, casino magnate Steve Wynn, and many others into a practical history of the field of Construction Management, which he pioneered.
This book will be of interest not only to a general public interested in the stories and personalities behind many of the most iconic construction projects of the postand#8211;World War II period in the United States but to students of engineering and architecture and members of the new field of Construction Management.
Synopsis
The life and political history of a woman who broke gender barriers in the Republican partyand#8212;and later threw her support to a Democrat
About the Author
John L. Tishman serves as Chairman Emeritus of Tishman Realty and Construction. His strategic management plan was based on broad diversification within the real estate and construction markets, joint-venture partnerships, and use and development of advanced technology. Mr. Tishman was personally in charge of such landmark projects as the World Trade Center in New York, the renovation of Carnegie Hall, the John Hancock Center in Chicago, the Century Club Theme Center in Los Angeles, and the Walt Disney Company's Epcot Center in Orlando. He is a Trustee of Carnegie Hall. He has been a Trustee of New School University since 1981 and serves on the boards of Carnegie Hall and the Central Park Conservancy. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan College of Engineering.
Tom Shachtman has written more than thirty books and many television documentaries. His 1999 book, Absolute Zero and the Conquest of Cold, was the basis for a two-hour documentary special for BBC and PBS, broadcast in 2008. It and Tom's script won an American Institute of Physics Science Communication Award for 2009. Shachtman, a long-term member of the Writers Guild of America, has written scripts for documentaries broadcast by ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, syndicators, and local stations. A former executive at the National Geographic Society, he has been a consultant to the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and to the New York Zoological Society.